NHL 
Jimmy Vesey will look to Boston Bruins in free agency: Report
Jimmy Vesey may decide to stay home when he hits unrestricted free agency on Aug. 15
According to a report from the Boston Herald, Vesey may have opted for free agency because he has decided on his hometown Boston Bruins. The Nashville Predators picked Vesey in the third-round of the 2012 NHL Draft and waited for him to graduate Harvard, hoping he could eventually join the club for their upcoming playoff run.
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On Monday, news broke that Vesey opted to not sign with Nashville. Predators officials attended Vesey’s last college game on Friday, asked for a meeting and were never given one.
Nashville general manager David Poile said Vesey was given “bad advice.”
Wrote the Herald:
“Vesey just wrapped up his college career at Harvard and exercised his right under the collective bargaining agreement to become an unrestricted free agent on Aug. 15. If Vesey reaches free agency it would be a crushing loss for the Predators, and maybe fantastic good fortune for the Bruins. According to an extremely well-placed source within the Boston-area college hockey community, the forward will opt for free agency and sign with the B’s.”
Poile said Vesey told Predators he would stay in Nashville, which made the situation all the more stinging.
"His dad had told me, had told (Predators coach) Peter Laviolette, Scott Nichol, Paul Fenton, that his son was going to sign with us. And Jimmy himself told Paul Fenton prior to the trade deadline, which was an important time for us because it was our last opportunity to change our team.”
The Predators have not brought up any tampering issues with Vesey. Nashville believed Vesey, who had 56 goals in 70 games for Harvard, could fit in their lineup right away.
He stayed at Harvard for four years, turning down an earlier spot at an NHL roster with Nashville so he could earn his degree.
Vesey’s dad is a Maple Leafs scout, and his brother was drafted by the organization. Boston also makes sense as a destination for him. But there will be no shortage of suitors for Vesey when he’s allowed to speak with other teams.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
